Melissa Hoskins (32) was a world track champion and two-time Olympian

Sunday, December 31, 2023 at 2:54 PM

The death of Melissa Dennis (32) has caused a shock within cycling. The Australian was active on the road and in track cycling for many years, became world champion and married cyclist Rohan Dennis after ending her career. He, of all people, has been arrested and charged with killing Melissa Hoskins, as her maiden name is.

Under the name Hoskins, the cyclist has made a name for herself in Australian track cycling since 2008. She won several national titles and became world champion in the junior team pursuit in 2009. She would later become the world top in that discipline. In 2012, she made her debut at the London Olympics and narrowly missed out on bronze, as Australia lost the battle for the medal to Canada.

In a team with Annette Edmondson, Ashlee Ankudinoff and Amy Cure, Hoskins managed to become world champion in the team pursuit in 2015. That victory was achieved in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, close to Paris, and was given extra significance because it happened in a new world record (4.13.683). Hoskins also won several World Cup medals in 2012, 2013 and 2014. Mainly in the team pursuit, but in 2012 she took individual silver in the scratch.

During the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Hoskins was top favorite for gold with the Australian team, but four of the five riders crashed hard three days beforehand. Hoskins was transported to the hospital, where the damage appeared to be minor. Despite the pain, she rode the qualifying and the first round, but in the final she had to watch how the Aussies finished fifth.

Hoskins also competed on the road for several years during her active career. In 2011 she drove for the Belgian Lotto-Honda and then four seasons for Orica-AIS, the predecessor of the current Jayco AlUla. In 2012 she won the final classification in the Tour of Chongming Island and she also won a medal at the World Championships for team time trial for brand teams three years in a row: silver in 2012, bronze in 2013 and silver in 2014. She was also second in the Tour Down Under for women in 2015.

In 2017, Hoskins ended her active career as a cyclist, after which she married Rohan Dennis in February 2018 and changed her name to Melissa Dennis. Together they had two children.

Passing away
On December 30, 2023, Hoskins’ life suddenly came to an end. She was hit by a pick-up not far from her parents’ home and taken to Royal Adelaide Hospital in a critical condition, where she died from her injuries. Rohan Dennis has been arrested and charged with ‘death by dangerous driving, careless/inaccurate driving and endangering human life’. He has been released on bail but is due to appear in court on March 13.